Thematic Areas: Protection

Protection broadly encompasses activities aimed at obtaining full respect for the rights of all individuals in accordance with international law – international humanitarian, human rights, and refugee law – regardless of their age, gender, social ethnic, national, religious, or other background (IASC-endorsed definition).

In general, protection refers to:

Protection of civilians in armed conflict (POC), whereby all parties to the conflict are responsible for ensuring that the civilian population is respected and protected

Protection in contexts of natural disasters or civil unrest, whereby national authorities have the primary responsibility for the well-being of those affected

At the normative level, significant progress has been achieved with respect to the protection of civilians over the past decade, but this progress has not consistently translated into more effective and better-coordinated protection efforts on the ground. To this end, the SG identified five core challenges in his 2009 POC report to the SC:

Enhancing compliance of parties to the conflict with their obligations under international law, in particular the conduct of hostilities

Engagement with non-State armed groups (NSAGs)

Protecting civilians through UN peacekeeping and other relevant missions

Humanitarian access

Enhancing accountability for violations

At the global level, OCHA promotes POC through support to the Emergency Relief Coordinator (ERC) mandate, including by: